Black Moon Rising
by Deacon Yote
Summary: The final offensive against Galcian and Ramirez was a failure. Vyse, Aika, and Fina are reported dead. But is all hope lost? A young man from a forgotten civilization may have the answers. M for violence, language etc.
1. Chapter 1

A/N: Hey everyone I'm back and got another idea. Yeah you might remember me from my StarFox fic, and hey, I'm getting to work on that too. But for now here's some SOA drabble to keep you going!

Disclaimer: I don't own Skies of Arcadia. I wish I did, because it is one of the coolest RPGs I have ever played...Plus I'd have alot of money right now...

Chapter 1: Failure

-The Fateful Eve-

I... I'm speechless. For probably the first time in my life

I don't know what to say. I never dreamed that this many Air Pirates

would come together to fight. Aika, Fina, Gilder, Drachma, Enrique... thank you all...

Tomorrow, we make history...

The battle between the two fleets raged on. Sailing toe-to-toe, the Blue Rogue/Yafutoman fleet went against Galcian's armada ship for ship, shot for shot. Vyse's ship, _The Delphinus_ tore through another Valuan frigate with it's Moon Stone Cannon, completely decimating the slightly smaller ship in a beam of purplish-white light before going up against the giant air station, _The Hydra, _where the Valuan lord was residing in. The young Air Pirate and his friends tore a hole into the air station and boarded, heading straight for Galcian to put an end to his madness once and for all...

Vyse stumbled back against the wall of the large room, sliding down it as he dropped his cutlasses. He had one eye open to look at the arm he was now clutching, the blue sleeve glowing dark crimson with each passing moment. Casting Green Magic wouldn't work, it took too much energy that he didn't have at the moment. The Blue Rogue tried to get up, yet his strength left him as the pain in his ribs brought him back down. He looked up at the source of his injury, the gleaming sword pointing at him had a vibrant red streak going towards the tip which ended in a drop of blood. Looking up to where the tip of the sword led, Vyse became sick as he saw the mocking smirk Galcian gave him. He had to look away, but the sights in front of him made him want to puke. Drachma was laying on his side in a pool of blood, the metal bird-arm attachment fully under him pressing against his rib cage. The old sailor stared blankly into space as his life left him, gasping every so often as he gave up trying to put his entrails back in. Aika and Fina were both in a corner, the two girls bleeding out, yet Vyse was not sure how bad. Galcian had cast Eternes on Aika, seriously hurting her before assaulting them with a move he learned called Terminal as Fina tried to help the redhead.

"Are you ready to give up yet?" Galcian asked as if bored. The Valuan lord brought the bloodstained weapon away from Vyse's face, sheathing it as if the younger man was no threat. Vyse's face twisted into a snarl as he tried to get up again, falling forward in the process. "NEVER!! I'LL NEVER GIVE UP! AS LONG AS YOU ARE IN POWER YOU'LL NEVER SEE THE END OF ME OR THE BLUE ROGUES!!" he screamed, a few tears staining his face. He knew right then he couldn't stop him, and he knew that he had failed. Drachma was dead and he, Aika, and Fina might be experiencing their last moments alive right then. Vyse let out an unearthly scream as he tried to charge Galcian again. Galcian sidestepped the injured Air Pirate and grabbed him by the back of his collar, effectively silencing and yoking up Vyse at the same time before backfisting him with an audible 'CRACK', which was probably Vyse's jaw breaking. Galcian then tossed the young man into the corner with Aika and Fina, letting land in a crumpled heap by their feet unconscious.

Galcian grinned before walking over to the control panel on the far wall. Leaning down, he pressed a button before clearing his throat and speaking. "All hands, all hands, this is Lord Galcian. Send a team to the bridge to take care of some prisoners. Communications, let the Rogue fleet know their leader is dead, and they will be too if they don't surrender." Galcian then released the button, cutting off the intercom. He turned and waited with his arms crossed until the guards came, dragging the trio away along with Drachma's corpse. With everyone gone, the Valuan lord turned towards the window to see the ongoing battle, a smile playing on his cruel lips..

Outside, the Blue Rogue fleet was getting hammered. _The Blackbeard_ was on its way into The Vortex in a blaze of fire and Centime was busy trying to keep _The Ironclad_ from following suit. On board _The Claudia_, Gilder was getting impatient...and worried. "What's taking them so long?! We can't keep this up forever!" the smooth pirate said as he turned his ship hard to port so that his men could fire on the broadside of an occupied frigate. _The Delphinus _ was having problems of her own without her captain there. The massive airship was engaged with three Valuan ships and was getting no quarter. "What is Vyse doing?! We're gonna run outta ammo soon!" Belle moaned as she and her girls loaded and fired the secondary cannons as fast as they could. A Pyres-charged cannonball hit one of the cannons, severely burning one of Belle's gunners, Lilly. As the two other girls assisted their friend, a retreat order came over the intercom. _The Albatross II_ had gotten the message from _The Hydra_ that Vyse and his team had been killed.

With that message, all communications in the Blue Rogue fleet stopped. What seemed like hours was only seconds before Dyne's voice came back on. "If we don't retreat now we won't have that chance later! They're handing our asses to us on a moonstone platter and if we all die here then their deaths will have been in vain. We'll have to continue this another time! NOW ALL SHIPS RETREAT!!" his voice boomed on the intercom. With that, what was left of the fleet of Yafutomans and Air Pirates retreated to the sky rifts, several ships in pursuit. The ships were quiet as they fled, not even the necessary damage reports were uttered, yet everyone could hear through the silence what was obvious: They've Failed...

Meanwhile, back on the Valuan continent in the ruins of Valua City, young man sprinted through the rubble, several Valuan soldiers in hot pursuit. "Pyrulen!" one of the soldiers, a sergeant shouted, causing a large wall of fire to sprout up in front of their quarry. The young man yelped and jumped back, patting his head down for fear of fire catching onto the cloak he had on. "That's as far as you go. You're coming with us." the sergeant said again. The man got into a low position as if he was getting ready to bear-crawl.

"Y' wan' me you gonna have t' knock me out!" The cloaked figure said. All he heard before seeing black was the word "Eterni."

A/N: Yeah I know this chapter is short, but I promise it'll get longer, and better. Hehehe, it's gonna be longer. Please send Reviews, I'll even take flames, I'm cold anyways.

Port : A naval term meaning the left side of a ship.


	2. Chapter 2

It's been two weeks since the Battle Above Soltis. The ragtag fleet of Air Pirates and Yafutomans managed to make a getaway, yet Galcian is still applying force to them, especially in the Yafutoman area. The Blue Rogues have scattered throughout Arcadia, hiding out all over the world. Meanwhile on Soltis, Galcian and Ramirez plan their next course of action.

"But Lord Galcian, why not just destroy Yafutoma with the Rains of Destruction?" Ramirez asked as he and Galcian walked down one of the silvery-white hallways in the main temple on Soltis, heads together in deep conversation as they brainstormed on to what their next move would be. "It would simply be faster and more effective than sending ships. Ships can be destroyed, the Rains cannot." the blond continued as they walked down the pristine hallway, the pair reaching the room Zelos dwelled within. The large silver orb hovered majestically above it's altar with the six moon crystals glowing as if in worship of the silver gigas.

"We will not use the Rains of Destruction unless necessary Ramirez." Galcian replied as he regarded Zelos with an approving eye, his arms crossed as he circled it. He turned to look at Ramirez before continuing. "If we are to execute change in Arcadia we must use the right amount of force. The Rains of Destruction is too much for this. We can and will take Yafutoma without destroying it. We've done it before and it will be done again. With the Blue Gigas defeated they have no defenses except that pitiful excuse of a fleet." Galcian then moved to leave the altar room before turning to look at the blond Silvite again. "Besides, the pirates may be hiding within their ranks. If we destroy them, we destroy Yafutoma's will to fight, which would be far more effective. Now come, the sooner these Blue Rogues are taken care of the sooner we can begin changing Arcadia for the better." Galcian said before turning and walking off. Ramriez nodded silently before following. The hunt for the Blue Rogues was about to begin.

A pair of eyes slowly opened, grateful for the darkness of the dingy cell. With a low groan, the young man sat up, slowly shaking the shaggy dreads as he tried to clear his head and recall what happened. His head pounded fiercely as he tried to remember, the pain making the task easier said than done. Attempting to stand, he came to realize the hard way that standing was something better left for another time as he plopped down on his backside. Hazel eyes looked around, taking in the surroundings- a dark cold cell much like those of the Valuan prisons with little light coming through the barred window of the door. The young man didn't notice the silohuetted head looking in on him. With a loud creak that sounded harsh to his ears the door to cell opened and two Valuan guards came in, eyeing the young man reproachfully.

"Oh good, he's finally awake," the guard in red armor said snidely as he closed the door behind him and leaned up against it. "For a second, we thought we lost our favorite source of entertainment."

"Oh you mean THIS is the guy the coliseum soldiers were talking about?" the guard in blue queried.

"Yeah, he's the one. The gladiator that dances in the ring. Tried to run away he did, but no one escapes Valua." Red replied. He walked over and kicked the dark-skinned fighter in the leg, prompting him to rise. "Get up you, there's a new arena for you to play in, and your first battle will be in front of the great Lord Galcian."

The wild haired man grunted almost inaudibly as he slowly rose on shaky legs. As he did, the pounding in his head came back with a vengeance. He would have rather sat on the cold, grimy floor for a while longer than get up and follow the two Valuans. "Galcian? Who's 'dis Galcian?" he asked numbly. It normally wouldn't have mattered, but after previous events this summons has piqued his curiosity.

"Fool!" Blue chided as he slapped his charge on the back of his head...hard. "Lord Galcian was the Grand Admiral of Valua's armada, and is now the new ruler of Valua and all her people! You'd best remember that for your sake." he continued as he pushed the wild-haired man out of the cell before the three walked down a dark corridor.

After what felt like a day's worth of walking, the trio passed through a door. On the other side was the cavernous area that made up the harbor of what was once the Grand Fortress. Coming up to one of the smaller docks, the two guards and the gladiator boarded a small Valuan vessel.The young man was prodded into the tiny ship and ordered to sit down. Shortly after everyone was settled in the vessel departed. It's destination, Soltis.

During this time, Valuan vessels of all kinds were landing in ports all over Arcadia. At Sailor's Island, Admiral Vigoro's ship, _The Draco_ docked at the bustling port town. The libido-charged admiral made his way to the town square, an entourage of troops following in trace.

"Hey you little peons, pay attention 'cuz I'm only sayin' this once!" he boomed as he stood on the wall of the square's fountain, "This island is now under the jurisdiction of Valua and it's new ruler, Lord Galcian! If any of you have a problem with that, then you can answer to me personally." Vigoro said, crossing his arms with a smug smile. Vigoro's troops stood at attention behind him, several running off to post notices here and there around the town.

The lusty admiral looked at the scene before him, a large portion of the townspeople came to see what the commotion was about. Among them, two fairly pretty young women were up front in the crowd. Vigoro saw them, his smile turning into a perverse grin as he pointed at the two women. "And you two. I'll be in port for a few days, but I expect to see you both in my quarters tonight." he said with as much savvy as he could muster before heading back to his ship.

Back on the Valuan ship, the young man woke up to the sound of his two escorts laughing. The blue one looked at him briefly before exploding into gales of laughter again.

"You can't be serious, he's actually called that?" Blue asked incredulously.

"That he is, just ask him yourself why don't you." Red responded, his laughter dying down.

"You, boy, what is your name?" the blue guard inquired, the slotted visor of his helmet hiding the large smile plastered to his face.

"M'name's Dresden, same as m'father's." the dark-skinned fighter said, not even bothering to look at the guards. The pounding in his head was gone, but he was annoyed nonetheless by the two guards.

"Liar, that's not what my friend told me." Blue corrected, "Says that everyone calls you something else. Has to do with that dark skin of yours."

"Had you been mo' specific, you'da got a mo' specific answer." Dresden said, now glaring. "They call me Shade, y'on't need t' know why but they do. I'd ask yo's, but dat'll 'prolly require a spark of intelligence dat y' can't spare right now."

"You best hold your tongue boy!" Red scolded as he backhanded the slave. "If it weren't for that mark on your arm that statement would be your last!"

Shade licked his swelling lip before looking at the guard with disappointment. "Was y' goin' easy wit' 'dat hand? 'Cuz it felt like a child strikin' me."

"You insolent little peon!! I'll kill you!" Red boomed and lunged for the smart-alec young man, but his partner held him at bay. Calming down, the guard huffed and dropped back into his seat."When you finally die in the coliseum, I am going to be there to ridicule your corpse."

"Aight, and when that happens it's also gonna' be a cold day in the deepest pit of Hell." Shade replied as he leaned towards the guard and stared him down, almost daring him to hit the younger man again.

During this little exchange, the small Valuan ship arrived at Soltis, coming into port at a tiny makeshift dock. The three individuals exited, the two guards prodding their charge along unnecessarily. Shade was guided down a labrynth of white halls and corridors before being thrown into one of the rooms on the way.

"Welcome to your new home for the moment." The blue guard said as his red partner slammed the door shut, casting Shade into darkness.

"I done seen better holes on the backside'a dogs." Shade said, sitting up and dusting himself off. The room would have been pitch black had it not been for the open slat high on the door. The dreaded man sighed but quickly froze, his eyes searching the dark depth of the cell as his hands quickly balled into fists, preparing to defend himself. He could have swore he heard something.

"A..Aika? Fina? That you?" a young man's hoarse voice came from the shadows.

"Naw, m'name's Dresden." Shade said into the darkness of the room. The young fighter heard a form moving, then shuffling into the light.

"Dresden huh? My name is Vyse."


End file.
